This tip applies to all of our applications. When you see a letter underlined in a link or form button, this means there is an available keyboard shortcut. This type of keyboard shortcut is called an “access key”.

Different browsers handle these keyboard shortcuts in different ways. In Safari (Mac OS), I press ctrl-letter. In Internet Explorer, I’d press alt-letter. Check your preferred browser’s manual to see how it handles access keys.

This screenshot is from Tiktrac:

To open up “Add a new task”, I’d press ctrl-a. The task save form also has an access key, so I can press ctrl-s to save.

Helipad has access keys on common operations, like new document and save document. You can even get straight into the handy search bar by pressing ctrl/alt-f:

If you use your applications regularly it’s worth…

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We’re proud to announce that Ebiwrite, a web application dedicated to translators, has been launched today!

Background and design

Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Yuka Mizuno and I’m Helicoid’s copywriter (I also help run the business-side of things). After working on several long translations last year, I wished for a web application created purely for translators.

One of the biggest annoyances I have with translation is constantly looking backwards and forwards between my source text and translation. On a computer this means flicking between windows or tabs, quickly ending up either fed up or with RSI. So I insisted my future husband (Alex, the designer and programmer of Helicoid’s applications) built translators a program that would resolve these issues.

The most basic problem, flipping between source text and translation, could easily be solved by splitting a text editor up into two panels. Alex created a prototype (using “Helip…

Continue reading → | ebiwrite, announcements

We’ve finally updated Tiktrac’s reporting section. What you now see in place of the old report pages is an incredibly flexible system for analysing your Tiktrac sheets in almost limitless ways. Creating your own reports is now possible, as well as filtering them to only show what you need.

Here’s an excellent example for anyone who deals with software: a report to show time spent fixing bugs.

Constructing this particular report was easy enough for my grandma to do it. I added a new report, named it, then added two filters: one to search the task description field for “bug”, and another to limit to a particular sheet.

Here’s how the filters look:

Spend some time experimenting with the new reports feature, and see what you can discover. If you find any really creative ways to use it, let us know so we can share your thoughts with Tiktrac’s fans. In return, we might just give you some *incredible discounts on T…

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Tiktrac’s now got a referral scheme. If you get 10 friends to sign up, you’ll receive 50% off the Standard or Premium accounts for a year!

All you need to do is get your referral URL and hand it out to friends, or even stick it on your blog. You can find your referral URL by logging in, clicking on Tiktrac settings and then Referrals.

Continue reading → | tiktrac, announcements, tips